A Sense of Belonging
by PansyParkinslut
Summary: When Hermione saw the basilisk in her second year, she blinked; and everyone knows, you can't blink-sent back in time with no recollection of her memories she quickly befriends the infamous Marauders and finds herself becoming part of their tight circle *TimeTravel Fic *Story line will progress quickly until they're more of age.
1. Prologue

**A_/N: Yeah, I know...another story; but I'm having trouble writing any of my other ones and this one keeps worming it's way into my head._**

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Prologue

"_Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size, and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it._

"_Upon seeing the reflection of the stare of this fearsome beast, one finds themselves in a petrified state rather than dead like the true thing. Petrification from its gaze is said to only be counterable when one blinks, but due to the incredibly small number of these Serpent Kings the approach has never been tested. The only known wizard to attempted said theory blinked out of existence upon closing his eyes. It's recommended that one doesn't blink when in the presence of one such beast. So when attempting to deal with this magnificent monster, don't blink._"

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the page in front of her, her mind felt like it was whirling with the new information; finally everything seemed to be coming together. Quickly looking around the desolate library, she carefully ripped the current page out of the thick black book currently open in front of her. Scribbling a few choice words on the top corner of the page, she felt a triumphant smile grace her face.

Crumpling the page up in her hand and stuffing it in her robes, she jumped out of her chair and hastily made her way out of the library after waving the book back to its original shelf. Summoning a small hand mirror as she reached the doors, Hermione spotted a familiar Ravenclaw at the far end of the hall, "Penelope," she hissed at the prefect, racing to catch up with her, "Wait up."

Turning around, Penelope smiled lightly at the second year; she liked Hermione, she was just about always in the library and frequently sought her out to talk. She liked the fresh perspective the young girl had on many of the tired topics in the NEWTS curriculum, "Hey Hermione," she greeted as the girl caught up to her, "What's up?" she asked hesitantly, noticing a strange look on her face. She remembered what the Headmaster had said about traveling in groups and was more than happy to walk with Hermione.

"It's a Basilisk," Hermione panted quickly, stopping to catch her breath, "The monster-it's a Basilisk." Waving the mirror in front of her, she sucked in a deep breath and bent over slightly before continuing, "Can't look it in the eye, it'll kill you," she huffed, "Reflection just petrifies you."

"Wh-what?" Penelope looked at the small girl with wide eyes; of all the people in the castle, she wasn't surprised that Hermione was the one who figured it out.

"It's been moving around in the pipes," Hermione breathed, straightening back up after having caught her breath, "Here," she stated, shoving the crumpled page towards her, "We have to go see Dumbledore." Taking a few hesitant steps towards the corner, Hermione gave her head a light shake and steeled herself; the Headmaster's office was only a few corridors over, yet Hermione felt as if she was preparing herself for a trek across Europe.

With one last look over her shoulder at the older girl, Hermione brought the small hand mirror out in front of her and closed her eyes; angling it down the perpendicular hallways, she took a calming breath and opened her eyes. Looking into the mirror, she saw a great big green shape with glowing eyes staring intently back at her; the only thing Hermione could think of doing in the split second she was looking at it was blink.

Feeling a small tug near her navel, the last thing Hermione remembered before her mind went blank was the last line on the crumpled page; _don't blink._

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_Thanks For reading :) I know it's short, but the chapters will get longer soon!_


	2. Chapter 1

_**A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews **____** I know it may not make a lot of sense based of the brief chapter, but I hope this one might help explain a few things. If not, feel free to PM me and I'll see what I can do to clear anything else up**_

Chapter One

It was a fairly calm night at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; the waning moon shining brightly in the clear sky. The early May air was still and you could hear the crickets chirping happily in the tall grass. Owls were swooping low over the castle and a lone shadow sat patiently in the courtyard.

Albus Dumbledore was sitting on a small stone bench under a small alcove near the castle doors; he could hear the gentle lapping of the Black lake and the rustle of leaves from the Forbidden forest. He watched fondly as his Phoenix Fawkes flew overhead, happily chasing after a few stray fireflies.

It had been a quiet Tuesday, which left the Headmaster humming peacefully as he went about his day; so he was all the more shocked when a deafening _crack_ echoed through the night. On his feet in an instant, Professor Dumbledore was shortly joined by Madam Pomfrey and his new Spells Mistress Minerva McGonagall, "What do you think that was Albus?" she asked in a hushed tone.

"Why my dear Professor, I have no idea," he replied quietly; walking out into the courtyard, the Headmaster carefully slipped his wand into his hand and began to gaze about the grounds. Upon seeing a small dark shape slumped on a nearby hill, he raised his wand and eliminated the grounds.

He heard an audible gasp from close behind him and shortly saw Madam Pomfrey rush by him; following his Matron at a slower pace, Albus heard the mumbling of many a spells as he neared her, "What is this Albus?" she asked him in a daze, staring down at the small girl laying on the grass, "Why won't she wake up?"

Crouching down beside the poor girl, he waved his wand experimentally over her frail looking form. A moment later he stood back up and conjured a stretcher, "Alas, she has been, petrified." He announced solemnly, lightly laying a hand on the other woman's shoulder.

McGonagall seemed to unfreeze at those words, for she appeared at his shoulder and looked up at him, "What does this mean Albus?" she asked tersely, unaccustomed to the Headmaster not being able to revive the girl.

With a small sigh, Professor Dumbledore looked down at her with the usual twinkle in his eye absent, "That, I do not know." He answered deep in thought.

As they brought the petrified girl up to the Hospital Wing, Albus was going through every possibility he could think of. By the time they had the small girl on a bed he'd settled on the only reasonable explanation; sitting in a small armchair at the foot of the bed, he turned to face the two women currently talking in hushed tones.

They fell silent under the headmaster's gaze, "Poppy," he mumbled, slowly pulling himself from his thoughts, "How are Madam Sprout's mandrakes coming along?"

The school nurse frowned at him slightly before replying, "They'll be ready for use by the next full moon I've been told."

Nodding his head, the Headmaster stood up, that gave him a little over a month before she woke up if his theory was correct; and if it was, he'd need all the time he could get.


	3. Chapter 2

_**A/N: I'm assuming the Marauders would have figured out Remus's secret by the end of second year as they become animagi in their 5**__**th**__**; also assuming that they'd have started calling him Moony even though they've yet to transform into their own namesakes.**_

Chapter Two

Hermione wasn't sure where she was, or how she got there; she wasn't sure of a lot of things actually. But a few things she did know for sure, her name was Hermione Jean Granger, she was born September 19th she was 13 years old, and there were two rather loud voices threatening to pull her from her sleep.

Cracking open one eye, she quickly scanned the room and found the source of the noise. It seemed to be coming from to boys sitting hunched in a corner talking rather adamantly about something. The one on the left had rather rugged black hair and glasses, while the one on the left had long, dark curly hair with piercing gray eyes.

Narrowing her open eye at the two, Hermione nearly jumped at the third voice drifting out from the other side of the curtain to her right, "Will you two gits shut up already, I'm trying to sleep." The voice was distinctively male and it sounded tired and strained. Hermione was inclined to agree with him, but held her tongue; she didn't know who they were.

Upon hearing their friend's voice, the two boys seemed to jump up and disappear over to where the third voice came from; their voices were muffled slightly by the curtain, but Hermione could still hear what they were saying, "Awe come on Moony, you've been sleeping all day; it's nearly time for supper and we want to go up to the owlery before the weekend.

Hermione heard the mysterious boy sigh before he replied, "Well go on then, I'll meet you guys in the common room."

Hermione had closed her eye as she was listening to the confusing conversation so she hadn't seen the woman approach her bed. Jumping violently when she felt a hand on her wrist, her eyes flashed open as the two boys came back into view. She heard the older woman mumble something that sounded faintly like, "How that man knows these things I'll never understand," before the boy with the curly hair turned to look at her, "Hey James," he grinned stopping, and holding out a hand in front of his friend, "Look."

The boy followed the other's gaze before an identical grin appeared on his face, "So that's what's behind the curtain" He drawled as the two boys went to approach the end of her bed.

Before they could take more than a step, the older woman next to her looked up at them and narrowed her eyes, "Out with you," she ordered, pointing towards the door, "I won't have you two tormenting _all _my patients."

The boys began grumbling under their breath, but left nonetheless. Looking back up at the woman next to her, she eyed her warily; why had she called her a patient? What was wrong with her?

When the older woman decided that they had left, she took out her wand and began waving it over Hermione who was becoming more and more frighten by the moment, "Wh-what are you doing?" she rasped out. Her mouth felt incredibly dry and tasted like old eggs.

"Just a few diagnostic spells, dear, nothing to worry about," she replied, continuing to focus on her wand for a moment longer before looking down at Hermione, "My name is Madam Pomfrey, I'm a healer" she stated calmly, before moving around to the other side of the bed.

Hermione followed the matron's movements with her eyes until finally she had to turn her head to see her; feeling a dull ache in her neck as she moved it, she wince and took in the condition of her body. She felt incredibly stiff and sore, as if she'd been lying in this bed for a month, "How long have I been here?" she asked, wondering what happened in the first place to wind her up in the care of a Healer.

"A little over a month dear," the older woman replied, confirming Hermione's earlier thoughts, "But don't you worry about that; you seem to be absolutely fine, I'll just floo the Headmaster and he can answer any more of your questions."

Hermione watched as Madam Pomfrey wander off into what she assumed was her office; taking the few moments to herself, she looked around the room. It was covered in a pale yellow glow from what seemed to be the sun setting, Hermione couldn't see a window from where she was, but she guessed there was a rather large one on the other side of the curtain.

Hermione sighed, she couldn't see much beyond the curtain; just the two chairs in the corner. Frowning, Hermione was trying to figure out why she was enclosed in the curtain why the Matron came back, "I've told the Headmaster that you'd woken up," she stated, settling herself down in one of the small armchairs next to the bed, "He seemed quite happy to hear it, though I think he knew you'd be waking up today."

oOo

On the other side of the curtain, Remus was laying on his bed listening intently. He wasn't sure when the curtain had gotten there, but when he woke up after the last full moon there it was.

Who was this girl? Was her timing just a coincident? Remus was full of questions, but the one he was wondering the most about was how did the Headmaster know she'd wake up today? And did it have something to with the full moon last night?

Remus felt himself getting slightly excited at the thought; he'd never met another werewolf before. He was about to get out of his bed and go over when he faltered. She'd shown up at the last full moon, paling slightly Remus began along another thought pattern.

Had he bitten anyone last month? Was she in here because of something he did? Feeling slightly sick, Remus curled up into a ball on the bed and pulled the cover back over his head. Maybe he wouldn't go over there.


	4. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Sorry for the wait; my internet has been down for the better part of the week not to mention I accidentally used the dates for the new moon instead of the full moon…grrr, I mean why would they make the symbols on the online calendar so similar… I'm just happy I caught this now rather than half way through the story- or worse-at the end.**_

_**I apologize for half this chapter being author's notes and the rest being fairly boring; I'll try to make it up to you in the next one; but I just wanted try and answer some questions!**_

Chapter Three

Hermione had just finished eating dinner the next time she saw anyone; he was a kind looking old wizard with hair down to his naval, he had soft blue eyes hidden behind a pair of half-mooned spectacles. He had long purple robes on with a matching hat.

Hermione couldn't help but wonder if his beard was long enough to tuck into his belt as he approached the edge of her bed, "Hello my dear," he said softly, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small package of yellow candies, "Lemon Drop?" he offered, settling himself in the plush armchair next to her bed.

"No thank you," she replied in a small voice, shaking her head; Hermione had no idea who this person was, but from what madam Pomfrey had said earlier she was guessing that he was the Headmaster.

The Headmaster gave her a kind smile and held up his hands, "Ah, no matter; they make one pucker up quite horribly," he shrugged noncommittally before looking intently at her, "Now, my name is Professor Dumbledore; I'm the Headmaster hear at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Pausing for a moment to gage her reaction, Dumbledore didn't seem very surprised when she continued to look at him unfazed. When she just blinked at him, he decided to try asking her some questions, "Why don't you tell me your name dear?"

A small frown passed over her face, _why did he want to know her name?_ Not seeing any immediate reason not to trust him, "Hermione Granger," she replied after a moment.

Professor Dumbledore seemed to nod slightly to himself before continuing, "I understand that you've been wondering why you're here." Upon seeing Hermione's nod, he stood up and began pacing beside her bed deep in thought; after a long pause, he turned to look back at her before replying, "It seems, my dear, that you had been, petrified."

oOo

Professor Dumbledore sat heavily behind his desk; it was moments like these where he disliked being Headmaster. Running a hand lightly over his brow, he looked over to the side of his desk. Fawkes was sleeping peacefully on his perch, his feathers ruffling ever so slightly with each breath.

With a small sigh, the Headmaster sat back in his chair and stared off towards the door. As far as he could tell Miss Granger had no recollection of what her life was like before she'd been found petrified on the grounds; he'd even gone so far as to- with both hers and Madam Pomfrey's permission- delved into her thoughts to see what he could find.

Albus had always prided himself on being a skilled occlumist, and the fact that he hadn't been able to find anything only confirmed his suspicions. Whether Miss Granger was from the not so distant past or future –for her clothing suggested she couldn't be from a too distant time- she'd come across a basilisk; and she'd blinked.

Sighing once more, the Headmaster shook his head, there was no way to prove his theory of course but he was in need of a back story for her. It wasn't every day a thirteen year-old girl shows up alone at Hogwarts not knowing who she was.

Pushing himself away from his desk, Professor Dumbledore quickly summoned a book form the library and thumbed through the old, dust covered tomb until he found the passage he was looking for.

"_Upon seeing the reflection of the stare of this fearsome beast, one finds themselves in a petrified state rather than dead like the true thing. Petrification from its gaze is said to only be counterable when one blinks, but due to the incredibly small number of these Serpent Kings the approach has never been tested. The only known wizard to attempted said theory blinked out of existence upon closing his eyes. It's recommended that one doesn't blink when in the presence of one such beast._"

Closing his eyes, he couldn't help but think of the ingeniousness behind this; while he was very curious as to how and where she'd found this basilisk, the Headmaster realized that finding out was merely out of the question.

Spelling the text back to the library, Professor Dumbledore left his office in search of his Deputy Mistress; it seemed Miss Granger would be staying with them indefinitely.

_**A/N: I'm not normally one to ask for reviews or comments, I was wondering if you would mind sharing your input on Wormtail; I have a poll currently up on my page pertaining to whether or not I should keep him in the marauders or have Hermione replace him. It would mean a lot if you would help me with this as I am writing it for you **___

_**One last thing; I realize there is a lot of plot holes when it comes to Time-Travel fics-the big one being Hermione's wand. My solution to this is to just simply never have Olivander look at her wand; I have no intentions of her ever seeing him in a matter that pertains to her wand so it seems unnecessary to bring that problem into the story. Another one that usually irks me is Dumbledore; he's always trying to use people to his advantage, especially in the case where Hermione could tell him about the future. So I simply stole her memories with no real intentions of giving them back; she left in her second year, what would she really know that mattered? Voldemort hadn't come back yet, they hadn't found out about his Horcruxes; there's no real way for him to use that to his advantage so I don't give him a chance. **_

_**While he does have his suspicions as to how she got there, he has no idea if she came from the near past or future or far.**_

_**But to answer many of your questions; Hermione's memories are gone. As a result of her blinking, what every ancient magic was caused, removed her memoires for her own safety. Thus Dumbledore think it's ingenious. We all know he'd love to use her to his advantage. I don't know whether I'll give her back her memories or not, or even if I'll bring her back to her own time; but this story WILL have a happy ending!**_


	5. Chapter 4

**_A/N: Yeah, I'm not going to even try to make any excuses for how long this chapter took; I just sort of lost my muse for it with needing to go back and fix basically my whole plot so far because of the stupidly similar full moon and new moon symbols… But I've found my muse and I can promise it won't be as long for the next chapter to arrive._**

Chapter 4

Hermione spent the week in the Hospital wing; Professor Dumbledore had been coming to see her every few days, always with a different sweet to offer her. The last time he came he brought some strange black candy that tried to jump and bite her, he called them cockroach clusters.

Standing next to her bed, Hermione smoothed down her pleated skirt, Professor Dumbledore had invited her to the end of the year feast; they'd had a small sorting ceremony for her the day after she'd woken up and was sorted into Gryffindor. To say she was nervous was an understatement, she had no idea what Professor Dumbledore had told any of the students; what would she do if they asked where she was from? As soon as the thought crossed her mind she saw the man in question pop is head around her privacy curtain, "Miss Granger," he greeted, giving her an easy smile before stepping back and motioning for her to follow him.

As they made their way down from the hospital wing, Hermione tried not to crank her neck; she hadn't been allowed out of the wing while she'd been here, so this was the first chance she'd gotten to see what the school looked like. Sooner than she'd hoped, Professor Dumbledore stopped in front of a large set of oak doors, "The great hall is right through here," he stated, trying to put her more at ease, "You may simply go in and eat if that is your wish, you needn't talk to anyone or answer any of their questions." He remarked, a twinkle in his eye that was beginning to become familiar to Hermione.

With a small nod, she watched as he pushed open the doors and strolled up to the dais; following behind him, she stared at his back and refused to let herself look at the other students. She could tell there were four tables full of them and that was enough for her. When they reached the head table, the headmaster turned to face everyone and she shuffled behind him. They were all staring at her; feeling her face heat up she stared determinedly at the doors they'd just came through, _someone shut them,_ she thought as Professor Dumbledore began to speak.

"Welcome, everyone, to another end of the year feast." He boomed, quieting the last of the whispers with a wave of his hand. "And as every year, the house cup needs awarding; but first, I'd like to introduce Miss Hermione Granger," he announced, gesturing back towards her, "She came to us about a month ago and will be joining us for her third year once term resumes; she was sorted into Gryffindor." He smiled, giving her a small push towards the table cheering.

Trying not to trip on her way over, she slid onto the bench a little ways down form the two boys she'd seen in the hospital wing earlier. Glancing next to her she saw a girl with red hair and green eyes and gave her a small smile in greeting, "Hi there," the other girl grinned, "I'm Lily Evans," she said, introducing herself, "Professor McGonagall told me you might be coming to stay with me this summer."

Opening her mouth to reply, Hermione heard Dumbledore continue on with his speech, "With Hufflepuff at 298 points, Gryffindor at 378 points, Syltherin at 393 points and Ravenclaw with 411 points I believe it's safe to say that Ravenclaw wins the house cup." A loud cheer went up from the table next to theirs and Hermione looked over at them as Lily grumbled in her ear, "We'd have won if they smartened up and left everyone alone." Hermione went to ask who she was talking about, but as the food appeared she found she was no longer interested.

oOo

When dinner was over, Hermione let Lily drag her up to the Gryffindor common room; Madam Pomfrey had told her that a trunk had been moved to the girl's dormitory for her. Watching Lily flounce down on her bed, she turned to look about the room; it was covered in red and gold, they'd turned out to be the house's colors and there were lion decals on the wall. Lowering down onto the bed Lily had said now belonged to her; Hermione looked over her shoulder as the door opened and two girls came in.

"Hey Lil," one of the greeted, she had a small round face and honey blond hair; she looked like a sweet girl Hermione decided as Lily introduced her as Alice and her friend as Mary.

"There aren't a lot of other girls in Gryffindor," Lily mentioned as the other girls mimicked her and perched on the nearby beds. "We pretty much all share a dorm, as opposed to being separated by year like the boys. The Hufflepuffs are like this too, but I think all the other houses have a few more rooms; we only use two," she rambled, fiddling with a strand of hair.

"Yeah," Mary piped up in agreement once Lily had quieted, "I'm a first year," she smiled, "And Alice here is a third year like Marlena, but I think she may still be downstairs."

Hermione gave her a small frown, "There are only four of you?" she asked hesitantly.

"Well there used to be a few sixth and seventh years," Alice said hesitantly, "But most of them went off and got married."

"A few of them died," Mary added in a whisper, "Other's just seemed to disappear. Now all we have is our Head girl and her sister, she's a fifth year but they room together. Dorcas and Emmeline are in their sixth year, they're both pretty close though so they usually stick together."

Hermione bit her lip, "And Hufflepuff?" She asked, not sure if she really wanted the answer at this point, but Lily just brushed her off.

"Oh, they're fine," she assured her, "It's mostly just because they're all so innocent so they don't usually last through first year. The Slytherins have a field day with them. I think they've got about two dorms worth as well."

Hermione simply stared at her, _lovely. _Saying goodnight to the other girls, she quickly changed into her pajamas and crawled under her covers before pulling the curtains closed.


	6. Chapter 5

**_A/N: I think I might let Hermione's memories of her parents remain and just have her labeled as an orphan. Surely she'd wonder about them… I won't bring them up too often anyhow, just in memories and the like._**

Chapter 5

The next morning was hectic, though more so for the other girls; there were clothes flying everywhere, objects being haphazardly summoned from different corners of the room, it was a mess. Hermione hopped she'd never get like this. Her trunk was still neatly packed from yesterday save for the clothes she was now wearing. After watching them for a bit, Hermione left the common room; she hadn't been able to talk to Professor Dumbledore about what she was doing for the summer. Maybe Lily was right, maybe she was staying with her.

Walking around the corner to his office Hermione saw the Headmaster standing patiently in front of the gargoyle as if he knew she'd be coming to see him, _he probably did,_ she mused, stopping in front of him.

Watching his eye twinkle she had a feeling she was right, and when he began to speak, she knew she was, "You would like to know what you'll be doing for the summer, wouldn't you?" he asked, more a statement than anything.

With a small nod, Hermione smile, "Yes Professor, Lily told me that I might be staying with her," she offered with a slight frown; the girl seemed nice enough, and given the time Hermione was sure they could be great friends but she wasn't sure if she was okay with imposing herself on the Evens' family like that. Mary did say she had a rather nasty sister.

Dumbledore simply nodded, "I thought it would be best," he agreed, "You two are in the same year and her parents have already said they'd be more than happy to take you in. We can always try something different next year if it does not work," he offered seeing right through what she was about to say.

oOo

Lily was excited to find out that Hermione would in fact be staying with her over the summer and spent just about the whole train ride telling her about what they were going to do. Hermione had never really gotten around to telling anyone that she basically had no memory of the last thirteen years of her life so she was perfectly okay with Lily barely giving her time to say anything in reply.

Apparently every Sunday was family night; they'd play board games or go to the cinema and occasionally go out for dinner. Bother her parents were muggles, so they would be able to go over to the local pool or visit the library. But the thing Hermione was most excited about was to hear that she had a cat; Hermione had always loved cats, but her mum had been allergic so she'd never been able to get one.

When they reached the station Lily's parents were there waiting for them; Lily looked like a miniature version of her mother, red hair and green eyes, but she definitely had her father's nose. Her mother's was sharp and pointed, but her father's was rounded at the tip. Behind her parents, Hermione got her first look at Lily's older sister, Petunia she was told. She had curly blond hair and their mother's nose, and she was sneering at everything around her.

When they made it to the Evans' house, Hermione was directed to the room next to Lily's at the end of the hall; Petunia was across from her sister and down a ways and Heather and Michael (as she had been told to call them) were right across from her.

Once Hermione had settled down for the night, she let her thoughts go; Lily had mentioned their being other magic folk in the area and Mary herself had said she lived right across the river so she wonder who else there was.

On the train she'd been introduced to the boys from the hospital wing, James Potter and Sirius Black, and their friends, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. She didn't have much of a chance to talk to them, for Lily had dragged her off shortly after that; James and Sirius had seemed overtly curious, Peter just looked weird, but Remus had looked afraid of her, and that made her pause. What had she ever done to him?

oOo

Over the next few weeks, Hermione and lily began to fall into a routine; during the week they'd leave the house after breakfast and either go see Mary or Severus Snape; he was Lily's friend from a few blocks over, he was a Slytherin in the same year as them. Hermione hadn't really been sure about him when they'd first met, but once she got to know him she realized he was just shy and his bark was worse than his bite. When they went to see him, they'd usually end up at the library or hiding out in his back yard. His father usually slept all day, so his mother would sometimes come out and tell them stories about what it was like when she'd gone to Hogwarts; she was a witch, but Severus' dad was a muggle and happened to hate all things magic unless it benefited him in some way.

When they went to visit Mary they would usually hole up in her room; both her parents were magical, but she had a baby sister who took up a lot of their time. Within the first week they'd already finished all their summer homework while Hermione read their textbooks from the previous two years; she felt like she'd be able to do everything, but she wanted to make sure, and reading books couldn't hurt.

oOo

When the last week of summer rolled around and the two girls got their booklists for the new year, Hermione couldn't help but be excited. Lily's parents were taking them to Diagon Ally the next day and Hermione finally be getting a wand. Professor Dumbledore had never answered her when she'd asked where it was but he'd gave her a satchel of money to the end of the year for any school supplies so she figured he'd just meant for her to get a new one.

**_A/N2: Diagon Ally and Hogwarts in the next chap J and maybe one more for 3_****_rd_****_ two for 4_****_th_****_ before slowing down at 5_****_th_****_… unless I make something happen…_**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When third year started, Hermione was feeling a little more normal; her and Lily were great friends, just as her and Mary were. Everyone seemed to just accept her; it was almost like she hadn't just shown up at the end of their last year.

The first few weeks seemed to just blow by, but when the first Hogsmeade weekend came up everything changed. Not only could Hermione not go without a permission form, but Remus was looking particularly haggard and sick. He was starting to look a bit better from when he missed class on Wednesday, but he still had dark circles under his eyes and his robes really did seem to be hanging off him.

When the next month came around and Remus's health was dipping again Hermione got suspicious; she knew he was a really nice guy, so she wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. But when it happened yet again in November, she went to the library.

When she stumbled back into the common room an hour after curfew, she was exhausted and had the beginnings of a headache. Slouching down on the couch in front of the fire, she looked around the empty common room. What should she do now?

oOo

When Christmas came around, Hermione signed up to stay at the castle; she still hadn't told anyone what she'd discovered, but she had a feeling that the boys, at least, already knew. The nickname Moony had suddenly made more sense.

Sitting at the back table in the library, Hermione was finishing her holiday homework. It was only the second day of break, but she'd rather have fun than be stuck doing homework the whole time. She knew Lily and Remus would be in the same boat and could only hope they'd bend the others into shape.

Hearing something tump down on her table she looked up and saw Lily sliding into the seat across from her. Proceeding to bang her head against the table, Hermione couldn't help but smile; James, "Hey there Lily," Hermione grinned, "What brings you here?"

"Do you even need to ask," came a muffled reply and Hermione decided to take pity on her.

"Not really, no," she conceded, standing up stuffing her books back into her bag along with her newly finished essay, "You finished your work I take it?"

A small groan was the only indication she'd heard her and Hermione was taking it as a yes.

As they made their way back to the Gryffindor common room, Hermione wondered if Lily knew anything about Remus. There was no way Mary, or any of the other girls did, but she was never sure about Lily; she always seemed to know more than everyone else.

By the time they were all gathered around the fire, Hermione had decided that she wasn't going to tell anyone or confront Remus until she knew there was something she could do to help.

And when Easter break rolled around, Hermione had just the thing; she'd read enough about werewolves to know they wouldn't attack other animals unless they were starving, and she knew Remus wasn't starved for food. Now all she needed to do was get the guys on board ad find out about Lily.

**_A/N: I know it's really short, but the next one will be mostly dialog and such. I needed Hermione to find out about Remus and get the idea for animagi going. I think she won't invite Peter along to the 'meeting' and from there, he'll just fade into the background… A bit like Neville at the beginning maybe, only we like Neville more J_**


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Hermione had been planning this since the second day of Easter break, three weeks ago, and she still hadn't figured out a way to approach them. She'd figured out that James and Sirius knew about Remus, she assumed that they'd told Peter, but she just wasn't sure about Lily. She figured she had, but she never gave any inclination at all; even when they'd had the lesson on them in DADA.

Fiddling with her hands in her lap, she looked up at James. She'd asked if she could talk to him half an hour ago and now they were sitting in a far corner of the library waiting for her to talk. She'd picked him because Sirius was too hot headed and she didn't want him to think she was prejudice. James, she knew, would go for her idea, most likely even without too much prodding.

With a deep sigh, she looked up at him, "I know about Remus," she said, getting it out of the way. Holding up her hand when he went to protest, she continued, "and I don't care. What I do care about is that fact that he's going through this all alone."

James just looked at her, "Are you suggesting that we get ourselves bit?" he asked incredulously.

"No, no, of course not; I've been doing a lot of research over the past few months and I think I have an idea."

oOo

James was more than happy with her suggestion and promised to talk to Sirius about it. Hermione was on her way to talk to Lily, she figured that if she alluded to it enough, Lily would let her know if she knew too.

Taking the seat next to her in a quickly emptying common room, Hermione thought best how to approach it. She knew they were fast approaching another full moon and decided to just go with that, "Hey Lils," she greeted with a smile.

"Oh, hey Hermione," Lily grinned, easily returning her smile, "I've been meaning to ask, are you coming to stay with me again this summer?"

Nodding her affirmative and fiddled lightly with her fingers, "Have you seen Remus lately?" she asked after a moment, lowering her voice after a quick look around the room.

Lily gave her a small frown and nodded, "He isn't looking so well is he? I mentioned it to James the other day and he just waved me off."

Hermione nodded and looked over to where James and Sirius were playing chess, she didn't know where Peter was, and she assumed Remus would be down with Madam Pomfrey, "He looked pretty down last month too," Hermione broached carefully and was met with a hesitant nod. She knew Lily didn't like gossip, especially when it was about people who were her friends, but this was about his health so Hermione was hoping she wouldn't take it the wrong way, "And even the month before that," another slow nod.

Hermione took a deep breath as she approached the telling point, "He seems to get sick every month, Lils," she continued, "I want to help him…"

Lily looked up and met her eyes with a worried gaze and Hermione knew she was right, "I think I know what's wrong with him…"

Lily gave one last nodded before whispering one word, "Werewolf."

oOo

Once Hermione knew all her friends were on board and they all knew, it wasn't hard to get them all together. She knew James had a thing for Lily and when she told him that she knew about Remus, he quickly went over to talk to her.

Summer had started and Lily asked her parents if they could make an impromptu visit to Diagon alley early to pick up a book for a project. Meeting up with James and Sirius, they bought as many books on animagi as they could. Mrs Potter had invited them all over to their estate for a few weeks in the middle of summer so they decided to read what they could and then meet up and discuss when they were all together.

Hermione wasn't surprised when Peter turned down the initiation and Remus couldn't make it as there was a Full moon in the middle of the visit, but he claimed a family vacation. Hermione was sad when she heard, she knew it would be easier to help him if he wasn't here, but she didn't like how he felt the need to hide it form them; more her and Lily as James and Sirius already knew.

At the end of their three week visit, two weeks before school was to start again, they'd made a break through. Lily and Hermione had been cross-referencing the different methods form the texts and found a commonality; meditation. Hermione figured if they meditated long enough, longer than any of the books called for, and focused on their magical core, they would be able to discover their animal fast and then manage the transformation faster as a result.

Hermione only wished they weren't only going into fourth year so they could ask Professor McGonagall for help. No matter how brilliant she knew her and Lily to be, there was no way she'd help them at such a young age.

So they went back to school in dampened sprits, though Hermione's rose slightly when she realized during the second week that Peter had all but stopped hanging about them. Apparently, he was hanging about with some people in Hufflepuff. Hermione couldn't bring herself to miss him and she was glad to see the guys didn't either; something just didn't sit right with her when it came to him.

_**A/N: Fourth year will go by fairly quickly until springish time, and I'm thinking of Lily and Hermione managing the beginnings of the change during Christmas maybe, and the guys following around easter.**_


	9. Chapter 8

_**A/N: New Poll up! What should Hermione's Animagus form be?**_

Chapter 8

Any progress was slow in the making, they'd almost been tempted to give up a few times and it wasn't until Christmas break when they made their first break through, "I see it!" Lily suddenly yelled from across the room. They'd tried using the common room, but it got too noisy during the day; eventually they'd asked Professor McGonagall if she knew of a spare classroom they could use, citing the idea that meditation can help understand ones magic and expand their knowledge. Hermione was pretty sure she knew what they were doing, but she was thankful that she hadn't confronted them about it.

"What do you see?" Hermione asked, moving over to her friend.

Opening her eyes and smiling, Lily practically bounced in excitement, "I saw hooves!"

"Hooves?" James asked, coming over as well, "Like a horse?"

"Not quite," Lily replied, shaking her head, "They seemed smaller."

A few days later Hermione made a similar discovery, only she didn't see hooves; she saw teeth, and they looked sharp. A little shaken up by the sight, Hermione opted to keep it to herself instead giving James and Sirius some pointers and helping Lily to figure out what her animal was.

oOo

The rest of the winter term passed without any more developments and the boys were once again beginning to lose hope. It was during a Hogsmeade weekend that Hermione was hit with an idea. Making her way over to Lily later that day she pulled her aside, "I know what we can do," she whispered, glancing at James and Sirius, "We're trying to find our inner animal, and accept them into ourselves," Hermione began, "But we're doing this inside, what type of animal wants to be locked up inside." Watching Lily nod along, Hermione felt more confident in her idea, "I say we try out side, we can find a spot somewhere around the lake, or just past the trees."

Later that day Lily told the boys and they quickly went outside to find Hermione. It was an early spring for Scotland, and Hermione couldn't have been more thankful. Over the spring break, only a week or so after they first try outdoors when Sirius jumped up and started whooping, "I did it!" he cried jumping up and tackling James. Hermione let a broad smile spread across her face.

From that point on, it became easier; James got a glimpse of his animal and they each started seeing more and more. Hermione was still quiet on what hers could be; all she would tell them was that it had sharp teeth. Not that she'd ever admit it, but she was worried she wouldn't manage it. She was starting to get conflicting images. Yes she was still seeing the sharp teeth and she'd even seen a muzzle once. But what had her worried were the eyes; she knew they were wrong.

Managing to push them form her mind during waking hours, it was late at night when she was sleeping, or meditation alone that they would come back to haunt her. A great big pair of yellow eyes.

_**A/N2: Super short, I know… But I need to know what her animagus form is to be before I continue! Please vote! Or let me know what you'd like in the reviews **____** And what could this possibly be with the eyes?**_


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